Mission Istanbul : accomplished

So then, I am officially , finally, foreign returned. My passport finally bears a stamp.

Turkey is the most unlikely of countries to visit - especially on someone's first visit abroad. But this trip was not planned by me, and my loyal readers know the story behind the trip to this absolutely beautiful city - Istanbul. And what a fairy tale like trip it was! From a hassle free group check in at the Delhi Airport to every night spent there, was like  living a dream. The 38 Platinum awardees with their spouses had every reason to believe that they have the best minds in the company - for no organisation would pamper their employees the extent to which they did.

Coming to what the trip meant to me. Istanbul to me is a beautiful amalgamation of history and a modern day city. Both coexist beautifully. In many ways it reminds me of Hyderabad, Kolkata and Delhi. Hyderabad and Delhi for the history, Kolkata for its charm.

Day One evening had the cruise dinner, and being on the Bosphorous felt some what emancipated. And all the wine and music made it very surreal. I noticed how some people tried hard to network with the biggies around and how some people effortlessly charmed their way into women's hearts. And then there were the lazy bones like me who were happily perched inside the cruise liner on a cosy sofa with lots of food in front of me. I did do some talking around with a few, with a hope of getting a plush job, only to end up discussing Google vs Microsoft. It starting draining me after a while, so i slowly walked up to the upper deck and sat staring at the waters, slowly changing their colour from deep blue to black, as the night spread.

 

It is never too late in Istanbul.So when we got off the liner, we hit the market down the road with another couple. My Gemini like mind instantly wanted to set up a kebab shop there, by the sea and feed happy tourists. And then Meeshu came to my mind, and R tugged me to go back to the hotel. I spent a lifetime there in just 10 minutes - thinking of different possibilities in life. My contemplative mood was disturbed again by R who was in a very happy mood.

Day two was for sight seeing. Which meant, mostly visiting historical monuments and important places in the city (as may be prescribed by guides). I am not a sight seeing person at all. At least not an organised sight see-er. I like discovering places on my own. But R urged it would be fun. I didn't regret it much after all. We didn't over do it. So that kind of kept me sane. And we stopped by for food on time and that kept me in a good mood all along. The places I was overwhelmed by was the Hagia Sophia church and the Blue Mosque. It is amazing how old these structures are and still so awe-inspiring. I couldn't help but catch a few people yawning hugely and spreading the dreadfully infectious action.  And then there was one couple, both of who had a camera - one had a digital camera for still pics and the other had a handy camcorder. Both were busy recording every single word said by the guide, every single corner of the mosque and every little thing of importance. The amount of footage they had by the end of the trip was good enough for a 2 hour documentary on Istanbul.

After a great meal at Sarnich (which mostly comprised of eggplant, and which by the way also seemed like their staple diet -  begun salad, whole begun* sizzler, begun bhaja, begun everything!), we headed to the Hammam. Some were weary of it so they left for more sight seeing and shopping. We were tired and we wanted someone to give us a bath (that's the only thing we made of the place).The pic warns you in someway, you know....it says -one of the 1000 places to SEE before you die. We should have just seen and left. Especially the men. Cause when we got together after the 'bath' they all seemed grim ..like they just saw death. Apparently in the name of 'bath' they were all beaten black and blue- nope, not the Indian style maalish. They were truly beaten up, lol. We, women on the other hand had a good time - it was a real ice breaker. Well 50 women suddenly shed clothes and gang up to get scrubbed by old obese naked ladies is some ice breaker! The scene was a direct lift from Ram Teri Ganga Maili, only this place was covered and was hot as hell - sauna,they called it. But, in all, an entertaining experience.

Evening was in a club called Anjelique. Beautiful decor and breathtaking view from the bar's terrace. This is supposed to be the most happening bars in the city. Very pish-posh. Very la-di-da. The only thing worth mentioning about the place is the food - even Apsara bar in Vadala serves better food. The veggies were spared thanks to the foresight of RAMS employees (the event managers), who were carrying at least 500 packets of MTR and Aashirwaad ready to eat meals. Of course it took them an hour to persuade the chef there to heat the food in their kitchens. But then well, we are Indians and we kind of like to leave a mark where ever we go-pleasant or unpleasant.

 

Day 3 was perhaps the best. We did something we'd never have done otherwise - we went sailing. We reached the marina and were greeted by a team of Rams employees with bottles of Nivea Sunscreen - SPF 45, and caps. Was very impressed. We were divided into groups of 8 and we set off to Princess islands which was 2.5 hours away. We were taught basics of sailing. Our captain- Capt Ibrahim was a cool chap with a lot of experience, and had a been there done that look. It was magical how we set sail after sometime. Just wished there was some chilled beer to make it a perfect experience. The 'camera' couple immediately got together to click pics - side profile shots, pics from the shores, off the shore, 10 minutes from the shore, 15 minutes from the shore, Titanic poses, setting sail poses, approaching Princess island pose...the works. I thought they made a very sweet couple. It was like capturing every aspect of the time spent together.

The evening too was the best that far. Ulus -Club 29, is one of the top 100 restaurants/clubs in the world. It was pretty kick-ass. And that night saw a drunk R, and a very very happy R. Perhaps the happiest I saw after our Goa escapade. And when R is happy, he dances. So he did, like a mad man, with his mad wife, both drunk, and plain happy.

The day before we left Turkey was the big day for women. It was shopping at the Grand bazaar. T here was an option for Golfers too. R- am sure made a mental note to start leaning this - CEO sport, and decided to accompany me. It was a madly colourful place. And a madly expensive place too. That's only because we promptly converted everything to Rupees, and 1 Turkish Lira is equal to almost 40 bucks! So we quietly did souvenir shopping - bought a ton of  - 'Evil eyes' - the post popular souvenir take away from Istanbul.  I got them in all forms - paperweight, key chains,wall hangings, bracelets. Having this in your house /work place will ward off the evil eye, they said. So where ever u go in Istanbul, you'll see an eye watching you- in airports, malls, bazaars, hotels, bars. Its damn intriguing. I guess its like our nimbu -mirchi funda. Only we don't have Nimbu mirchi souvenir takeaways for tourists! The famous Turkish rugs were beautiful, but again, pretty expensive. And the gold and Silver jewellery there was to die for. Absolutely beautiful. I personally abhor gold, but the gold here was pretty contemporary. 

 

Ah. The big night. It was the awards night. And all awardees were in their best suits and dresses. It was a sight. And the event very very well managed. It was held at Adile Sultan palace. Apart from Pramod Bhasin making his speech and Monty and Piyush giving away the 'hammam' awards, the highlights were the swirling dervishes and the belly dancers. The swirling dervishes swirled to the beautiful Sufi music and there was complete silence in the room. It was divine and very very inspiring. And the belly dancers were pure entertainment. Oh yes. It was also the night also was a big night for Turkey- they were playing Germany in the Semis. I felt sorry for the waiters who had one eye on the screen and one one our plate. Its a soccer crazy country so when they lost, you can imagine what the mood in the room was like. Many drinks, dance and photo sessions later, we left for the hotel with heavy hearts. Why do holidays come to an end, so quickly?

Next day was a visit to the spice bazaar. We picked up loads of flavoured tea and some random stuff. The place smelled divine with all the spices hanging. We had to look for a toy shop- our princess was waiting , and we had to go back with something for her. So we found a toy shop with all Chinese made toys. Picked up a 'bath tub' which allows one to give your doll a bath with the help of a shower (she loved it!). We headed back to the hotel and then to the airport. And yes, we spotted the Turkey team coming back home. Welcomed by crazy fans.

Phew. Am glad I blogged this. Cause, the moment we landed in India, suddenly Istanbul was like a distant memory. I just lived it again.